A few days ago, I decided to watch the recently released, and already very controversial, Netflix Special of comedian David Chappelle, “The Closer”. The final segment—in which Chappelle references Daphne, an aspiring comedian transgender woman, who killed herself—is particularly poignant. And through some conversations I had with friends, I realized how deeply this segment connected… Continue reading Empathy as a Prison Key
Category: Love
How to do Empathy?
Books published recently have made the case either for or against empathy. A former colleague and friend, Jamil Zaki, published “The War for Kindness“, subtitled “Building Empathy in a Fractured World.” Paul Bloom, a researcher at Yale University, published “Against Empathy“. They even engaged one another on occasion. This question still remains for me: when… Continue reading How to do Empathy?
Wanting, Liking, and Loving
The other day, I was on a weekly call with three other people I am taking an online course with. Going through this experience together, I sense that we have become really good friends. I expressed to them my anxiety about everything that could go wrong with the apartment my husband and I are about… Continue reading Wanting, Liking, and Loving
Becoming Heart-Strong
Over the past three days, I have repeatedly listened to a song that touches a spot deep inside: “See Me Fight” (by Two Steps From Hell). At the beginning of the video—and in some other places as well—I have seen the tag line “Music Makes You Braver,” and the spot this particular song touches indeed… Continue reading Becoming Heart-Strong
Escaping the Emotion Prison
Most of what goes on in our brains happens outside of our awareness. And while we typically have access to the end product of mental processes in the form of thoughts and feelings, it really is difficult to get a handle on how those products come about. We are, in a sense, prisoners. Just as… Continue reading Escaping the Emotion Prison
Trauma and Love
I’m sure that a lot of people have written about this—much more intelligently than me, I guess. The reason to write this post is that as I was having the image I will describe in a moment come to mind, I felt a powerful sense of “Yes, that’s it!” And if you enjoy it even… Continue reading Trauma and Love